Say You'll Haunt Me
by HybridPlaything
Summary: Duo has a little quirk he hoped no one would notice, but Heero noticed it and to help Duo purge the irritating habit he suggests a journal. Heero's not the only one to notice this quirk though and Wufei has a different idea on how to help Duo. 2x5
1. Therapeutic?

**Say You'll Haunt Me**

_**Author's Note**: _This Story is inspired by _**Fangs of the Father**_ by **Umei No Mai** and _**The Beast in Me**_ by **Ajayd**. Two very good stories that I highly recommend. Also I haven't forgotten my other stories, They are currently being revised and beta'ed and will be updated when the process is complete. Thank you to those who have read and stayed by my side, it means a lot to me.

_**Disclaimer:**_ Gundam Wing is owned by Bandai, Sunrise, Sotsu and others. The authors in this archive make no claim of ownership of anything but their ideas and the stories themselves, and write for entertainment only. No copyright infringement intended.

_'Italics'_ – Words being written or read.

'Apostrophes' – Thoughts.

"Quotations" - Speech.

**Therapeutic?**

_'He never broke his promise to me. He said we would always be together, no matter what, and even as he made that promise with his last breath he kept his word. You see he never left. I know you're probably thinking I'm crazy right about now and I have no proof that I'm not but I can try to explain.'_

Duo stared at the words glaring at him from the computer screen and sighed. He was going to shoot the busybody who suggested he keep a journal to deal with his thoughts, 'This isn't therapy it's torture. Too bad I've already shot Heero. Multiple times.' He smiled the thought for a moment before thinking on why the other boy suggested keeping his thoughts logged. He had always suspected that it would be Quatre who would notice his little quirk, but the Arab used his observational skills to gather Intel on the tall and lanky European in their little band of terrorists. He shook his head, he needed to try and write something because he knew for a fact that the pilot of the Wing Gundam would hack his computer to check and see if he was doing anything about his distraction. Well, to be honest it wasn't a distraction at all, just a quirk that was irritating the other pilot but trying to explain it was something Duo had never even considered, mainly because he didn't think he'd ever get close enough to anybody for someone to pick up on it.

Once again he looked at the words on the the screen before turning to his left to glance at the window displaying a crimson sunset. The sight was breathtaking but the vision standing just to the side of the window with a look of longing made the sight truly something else. Too bad Duo was the only one to see the vision by the window. _'Solo was my everything back then.'_ He began typing anew as he delved into his past again. _'We were both urchins, unwanted and unloved by everyone except each other, but that was okay cuz all we needed to survive was each other. I was always the distraction, the decoy, the bait. I'm good at it and we both knew it. Don't get me wrong I'm a stealth expert, I learned from the best. Well, Solo was the best in my books, and my first teacher so he holds a spot of honor no other can have. That's not important now though, or maybe it is, I'm not sure. _

_Anyway, we were together for as long as I can remember. My earliest memories all have Solo in them and I'm sure that at one point there was someone looking after us because there is no way a newborn infant can survive the dumpster for a single night on L2, but again that's neither here nor there and irrelevant in the long run. I don't know my actual age but since I'm with four other guys who claim to be 15, I say I'm 15 as well. Again another moot point.'_ Duo sighed again, his mind didn't work in a clear and precise way and it was hell trying to write in a way that someone could understand. Smirking he continued as the flow of words started again. _'Heero ya dick stop hacking into people's personal files.' _ Duo let loose a chuckle as he thought what the stoic boy's response to his little jibe would be as he continued typing. _'So yeah, it was always just us for a good few years. Occasionally we'd look after a few kids but they never stuck around for long. Ya know It was in A.C. 185 that Solo made his vow to me and I officially took up the name of Duo. It was also the year when I began to believe in the God of Death. I think I might have gone crazy at that time too. Ya see after we burned the Solo's body I began to see glimpses of him where ever I went and at first I thought it was my grief just projecting his image onto unsuspecting strangers. That wasn't the case. It wasn't until almost three months later that I finally stopped to really look at my phantom Solo. I had ended up in one of our old haunts, alone, cold and hungry but fully alert since I felt like I wasn't alone. He looked so washed out and faded when I first looked at him. He was sitting in Solo's spot. A nook between the office and the break room in a rundown warehouse. It provided the most warmth and was sheltered from view from any passerby's, not that there were any. I don't know why I did it back then but I spoke to Solo. He looked so relieved that I had acknowledged him that I just couldn't stop talking to him and suddenly all the grief I had just lessened. I knew he wasn't really there but he was in a way._

_Solo and I were close but never close enough that I could ever predict or recreate his actions in any given situation, much less one we never encountered together. A flimsy explanation but it's the best I can offer right now. He never spoke with me but I could understand his body language perfectly after having spent years together and I knew he could read me just as well. I picked up a few kids in 186 and proceeded to teach them everything Solo taught me. Things were about as well as could be expected in our situation, but in 187 I got fed up with the shortage of food. I had kids depending on me so I got it in my head to hit an alliance base. Solo tried to warn me but I wouldn't listen, we NEEDED food, but there was a shortage everywhere only the bases had enough to feed extra mouths. It was the worst decision I had ever mad but at the same time it was the best too.'_

Duo stopped typing as he was overcome with an onslaught of memories of the Maxwell church and the kids he would never see again. There were three of them. Todd, a long haired blonde that was kind of like Solo but lacking a lot common sense. Jack, a young girl who hated to be called Jacqueline and a mean right hook. And the baby, Joseph who was terrified of water because he had nearly been killed in the sewers before Duo had found him.

Those kids were the closest thing Duo had to a family after Solo and when they had ended up in the Maxwell Church Orphanage, Duo was full of conflicting emotions and ended up a permanent resident of the church, not that he minded. Father Maxwell and Sister Helen were the parents Duo never had and never knew how much he wanted until they were threatened. The day the rebels decided to hide in the Maxwell Church was the only day he could say that he truly regretted his actions. He had only been eight and the Father and Sister were all Duo had and when the rebels came and threatened his home Duo reacted as he and Solo always had. To take care of the problem, but he didn't realize that the Alliance was also going to take care pf the rebel problem.

Duo managed to get into the base under a hailstorm of bullets and even as one of those bullets tore through his shoulder he continued on and liberated the covered MS and it's transport and hightailed it back to the church. The sight that greeted hims was horrific for lack of better words. Fire consumed everything and the only body Duo was able to find was the half buried Sister Helen who seemed to be holding on just for him, to know that he was ok. Duo could feel Solo's presence hovering and felt that he could be strong. When his 'mother' died in his arms Duo took on the mantle of God of Death, amongst the sirens and whispers of the Maxwell Demon, Duo encountered Thanatos.

_'It made sense later on that we were a pair, me an' Solo. When I began hiding out in schools and actually learning about various cultures. We were Thanatos and Hypnos. Death and Sleep. Solo was already asleep and I was guarding him within myself. I was Death. The Grim Reaper, Great Destroyer, Shinigami, Azrael. Thanatos. I held many names; all meaning Death for those who were the enemy. When I met up with Howard and Pestilence in 192, I was trying to leave the past behind but I was too full of anger. Solo never left but I could still read him like a book; he was worried about me and was skittish around me after I took up the name of Thanatos. I could see my alternate self as clearly as I could see Solo, but they never spoke. To each other or me, at least they didn't speak with words. The two visions could broadcast a range of emotions and it was easy for me to tell what they were trying to say.'_

The typing stopped again and Duo looked to his right instead of his left. Thanatos, or Shinigami, was watching Solo with a look of longing before he directed his gaze at Duo. Shinigami shrugged with a manic grin that screamed 'He's mine. He just doesn't know it yet.' Duo shook his head, 'He fears you and the power you have.' At this Shinigami's features darkened and he raised a brow in challenge, 'Is it really me he fears?' Duo paused in his little mental debate to study the two apparitions only he could see.

Solo was tall and lean with blonde hair falling to his shoulders in a style that Duo could have sworn he'd seen on someone else, but couldn't quite place who at the moment. Mocha eyes filled with an intelligence that was more street wise then book wise quivered with content as the sun finally dipped behind the mountains of Sanq. Plain gray shirt and faded blue jeans had replaced the black t-shirt and torn jean shorts of his boy hood and Duo wondered if this was really how Solo would have looked or if this was how his mind perceived a grown Solo. Shaking his head he looked over to Shinigami who was also studying Solo.

Shinigami could have passed as Duo's twin and it still unnerved the pilot a bit at times. The trademarked chestnut braid and cool violet eyes sparked with wild emotions only held in check by the mental barrier Duo had erected the moment he unconsciously split himself in half. Shinigami might have looked like duo's twin but he was clothed completely different. He didn't wear the preist collar or all black and if Duo was honest with himself Shinigami's style sort of terrified Duo. His alternate persona was wearing black leather shorts that ended just below his knees. The shorts weren't skin tight and for that Duo was greatful, but still the look of him in leather was quite disturbing. His torso was barly covered by a thick leather harness and his arms and legs were wrapped in thick linen bandages. While Duo knew that this particular outfit was something modified from an MMO he once tried out at the orphanage with another kid, the sight of it on 'Duo' was...strange. But what drew the eyes were the many gadgets Duo was always working on strung along the criss-crossing bandage belts along Shinigami's hips.

Duo's inspection was cut short as two sets of eyes gave him a pointed look before focusing on the bedrooom door. Standing Duo looked at the clock and noted it was dinner time and he mentally cursed, he had spent all day in his room and he was sure Quatre was going to worry and be knocking a-

"Think of the devil and he shall appear!" Duo joked as he opened the door only to be face to face with the 'Solitary Dragon.' "Oh! Uh...Hi 'Fei." the American said lamely and he noticed that his tag-alongs were slightly behind the Chinese pilot laughing silently at his poor excuse of a recovery from the shock he felt. Wufei raised a brow when Duo's eyes darted left and right to focus on something just behing him but Duo just gave a sheepish smile and Wufei dropped the matter, "Barton and Yuy have left for a mission and Winner requests you join him in the living room for dinner and a movie." The boy had a slight scowl on his face but Duo was used to it, Quatre was under the impression that Wufei and Duo didn't get along, well so were Heero and Trowa, but pilots 02 and 05 had a grudging respect for one another that Wufei insisted on reinforcing and strengthening at random intervals. But on nights when Trowa left for a mission without the blonde Arab, Duo found himself kidnapped and at the mercy of Quatre. Tonight seemed to be one of the night's that Wufei wanted to bond but had to wait.

"You missed dinner Maxwell." Chang's voice broke Duo's thoughts but only for a moment. 'That explains the scowl.' he thought but answered aloud, "Yeah I was trying out a mind exercise Heero suggested. Don't know how much good it'll do though." Wufei seemed to bristle at this and he shook his head, "When you are finished with Winner and if you are not tired, I managed to get anew book." Duo instantly forgot about Wufei's odd bristle and asked, "A.C. New or Pre-Colony New?" He secretly loved to read and Wufei happened to know this little secret, "Come later and you'll see." with that the Chinese boy disappeared into his room next door to Duo's and the braided teen sighed, he hoped Quatre picked a short movie.

When Duo entered the livng room Quatre smiled, "_French Kiss_, it's a romantic comedy sort of night." Duo nodded and commendeered the popcorn and a soda from the blonde, "Sounds good to me!" Sitting down on the floor between Quatre's knees, Duo made himself comfortable and settled in for at least two hours of mildly funny torture. 'Wufei you better not start that book without me!' was the last thought Duo had as the movie began.


	2. Truth of the Eyes

**Say You'll Haunt Me**

_**Author's Note**: _This Story is inspired by _**Fangs of the Father**_ by **Umei No Mai** and _**The Beast in Me**_ by **Ajayd**. Two very good stories that I highly recommend. Also I haven't forgotten my other stories, They are currently being revised and beta'ed and will be updated when the process is complete. Thank you to those who have read and stayed by my side, it means a lot to me.

_**Disclaimer:**_ Gundam Wing is owned by Bandai, Sunrise, Sotsu and others. The authors in this archive make no claim of ownership of anything but their ideas and the stories themselves, and write for entertainment only. No copyright infringement intended.

_'Italics'_ – Words being written or read.

'Apostrophes' – Thoughts.

"Quotations" - Speech.

**Truth of the Eyes**

Duo was still giggling over one particular line in Quatre's chosen movie and he couldn't stop himself as he thought of a grumpy scowling Wufei with a french accent saying "You people make my ass twitch." He broke into fresh peals of laughter as he reached Wufei's bedroom door and knocked as he tried to reign in his laughter.

Wufei opened the door with a raised brow and watched as Duo's manic laughter died almost instantly when he finally looked up and to the left of Wufei's shoulder. If that wasn't strange then slight narrowing of his eyes was even stranger as he glanced to the right of he shoulder, but Duo brushed it off quickly and smiled. "So ya gotta book we're gonna read?" he asked as Wufei stepped aside and allowed the braided menace to enter his sanctuary.

Wufei nodded, "I found this one in that thrift shop we used for your last undercover assignment. Also considering you enjoyed the myths we managed to dig up I thought 'The Odyssey of Homer' would be a good read for us. Unfortunately they only had one copy and the margins are full of scribbles from a student."

Duo was shocked for a good five seconds before he moved himself to his spot on the floor next to Wufei's reading cushion. Wufei just nodded accepting of the arrangement; tonight Wufei would read aloud and when they next decided to do this Duo would pick up where Wufei left off. It was an arrangement they had before when Duo had managed to get hold of a copy of a battered book detailing the myths and beliefs of Ancient Egyptians.

It was then that Wufei noticed despite Duo's personality and actions, the braided boy held a lot of respect for religion. Not just his own, if he had one Wufei was still unsure, but others as well. If Wufei was honest with himself he would have to say that he was impressed with Duo's thirst for knowledge and love of a good story. Not only that but Duo just seemed like a completely different person when he was reading or listening to a story. His eyes didn't dart around or focus on points just behind and to the side of someone.Wufei hadn't figured out why Duo didn't or couldn't focus but he was going to find out. Eventually. But right now he just wanted to enjoy the book so he opened it up and began reading the introduction, which explained the format of the book. A glance to his side and Wufei could see that Duo had closed his eyes and was relaxing a good sign. He never realized that he had more then Just Duo for an audience, and that Duo only relaxed because Shinigami and Solo relaxed as well in this room.

Two days after the movie night and book night Duo was called out on a solo mission and he decided that he would write a bit more in his journal to see if it cleared his head any and to see if Heero actually did hack his system.. Everyone was under the impression that Heero was the best hacker and well, Duo let them believe that, he could hack just as well if not better then Heero. Duo just didn't flaunt the fact that he was a proficient hacker. He let everyone think his only skill was in stealth and explosives, hell he was even a decent tactician when he put his mind to it but most often then not he'd just go to Quatre. The little blonde was a master strategist and Duo accepted the fact that the Arab could come up with a near flawless plan of attack in a matter of moments. The deceiving little bastard was deadly if you didn't expect much out of him, Duo learned a lot while laying low with Quatre just before they picked up Wufei.

The safe house Duo would be staying at wasn't very appealing and his ghostly companions made sure that Duo knew it. Solo eyed the shack with a look that said, 'We stayed in safer places back home then this' and Shinigami shook with silent laughter as his emotions conveyed that if this was what killed them then Duo didn't deserve the mantle he wore. The shack at one point might have been a cabin but time seemed to have forgotten it and the ivy surrounding the walls gave it the look that those creeping plants were the only things holding the place together. Not a comforting prospect but Duo persisted and moved inside and decided that the living room would be where he slept, he didn't even want to think about the bedroom or how small and uncomfortable it would be.

'Damn Quatre and the Maguanacs for pampering us.' Duo thought as he settled into the threadbare couch to rest before he had to infiltrate his target. An easy smash and grab is what was on the agenda and Duo knew to be perfect a good night's sleep was in order. Solo and Shinigami posted themselves on the roof to watch out for any threats but they had nothing to worry about as Duo was left undisturbed by the world.

"Fuck me!" Duo cursed as he dodged another barrage of bullets, he hadn't planned on getting caught. But of course something would have to go wrong, and what went wrong? Trowa and Heero were posted in the same base that Duo was suppose to detonate. He was gonna maim and or kill whoever messed up their paperwork. Heero the bastard was the one to catch him hacking the system and had given him enough time to hack and get out but by a stroke of luck some novice soldier noticed that Duo looked a bit young to be wearing a uniform and decided it was a good idea to open fire.

Mentally checking his schematics of the base layout Duo noted that he could blow the charges and still get out with minimal damage. Solo was pleading for him not to do it and Shinigami was smiling and giving him the go ahead. Duo could trust his phantom death and did, he only hoped that Heero and Trowa would have had the sense to escape knowing he was there for a reason.

He hit the detonator's button and took off running again, only the God of Death was crazy enough to blow up a building while still being inside but he didn't have to worry Solo and Shinigami were leading him out to safety. Deathscythe wasn't too far and Duo would be back with the other four within hours. Or at least with Wufei and Quatre, he didn't really know where Heero and Trowa were going to go because of this.

The moment Duo landed at the safe house he knew something was wrong; how? Because Shinigami was on edge, he wouldn't move two feet from Duo's side and it made the braided pilot mildly uncomfortable. But it wasn't until he stepped inside the safe house did he know why he was so uneasy, when he was suddenly grabbed by the throat and slammed up against the nearest wall he knew exactly who was causing him such unease.

"Heero." was snarled out and Duo knew that the tight hold he held over Shinigami was slipping as the phantom flickered like a dying flame, the personality was fighting to get loose and his stiffly shaking body was proof enough for Duo, he knew if he lost control he wouldn't be able to get it back right away. Heero hadn't won the trust of Shinigami completely yet and this little stunt seemed to push him back further; Solo watched with avid interest as he soothed Duo and tried to keep him in control.

"What were you thinking Duo?" Heero stated the question through clenched teeth. He and Trowa had barely cleared the blast zone when the explosion went off and Heero had wondered if he had been trying to kill them; it wasn't until Trowa pointed out that Duo didn't have sufficient time to clear the blast that Heero wondered if the boy was suicidal. The quick darting of his eyes didn't help Heero's suspicions.

"Let. Go." Duo practically growled from lack of air.

"Answer me." Heero insisted but loosened his grip slightly.

"You had time to clear the site."

"You did not. Were you trying to kill yourself?"

Duo blinked for a moment before he began to laugh. So outrageous was this comment coming from Heero who seemed to make a hobby of doing life threatening things that Duo and his two phantoms all laughed at this and while Heero couldn't see his extended audience he could see Duo quite clearly.

"Yanno if you're gonna ask someone that ya should cut back on your own suicidal stunts before hand. As for your question, no, I am not trying to kill myself I just know what I'm doing." He shrugged and pulled Heero's lax grip from his throat before heading up to the shower, but before he was completely out of earshot he called back "Hey get a hold of the doc and see who screwed up cuz you guys weren't supposed to be at my base."

_'Well Heero hasn't started reading these little snippets yet. I know you will soon and when ya do just keep quiet about it alright? I now what's going on and I don't need ya to interfere anymore then you have. Anyway the mission today sucked. Shinigami nearly got loose when Heero ambushed me when I got back, he should know better then to get me unawares like that. But I guess I wasn't completely unaware I mean I could feel that something was gonna happen. Whatever it doesn't matter now. I I just wanna read my book without worrying about anything. Besides the guys are calmer after I've read a bit with Fei.'_

That was all Duo wrote at, he really just wanted to shower and curl up and have Wufei read to him. Solo and Shinigami would settle and listen or if they got bored would wander off only to return when Duo was ready for bed. It was odd how the only pilot to earn Shinigami's trust was the pilot of Shenlong and Duo had to wonder if it was because he trusted the Chinese boy, but then what did that say about the other pilots? He had spent enough time with both Heero and Quatre to build some type of trust there but the dark alter ego that Duo held onto didn't trust them and didn't relax in their presence as he had with Wufei.

As he stood under the hot water he quietly called for the specter of his inner demon and when he appeared he mentally asked why Wufei had his trust but the others did not. Shinigami gave him a look of 'Are you Serious?' and when Duo didn't move to change the subject the entity just shrugged before he opened his mouth and a stream of silent words were released. Duo could read lips, that wasn't a problem but his shadow self seemed determined to keep his secret and the only two words Duo was able to translate were 'see' and 'masks'. Then Shinigami was gone leaving Duo alone with his thoughts.

Duo entered his room with only a towel and Solo was quick to scold his lack of clothes. One never knew when they would have to just bolt and to the street kid Duo was way too lax about getting dressed after a long hot shower. Shinigami didn't seem to mind as he lounged on the bed staring longingly at a packet of chocolates, Duo smiled and as soon as he was decent he opened the sweets and popped several in his mouth and noted the look of bliss that passed over his specter's face as he headed to Wufei's room.

If Wufei was surprised to see the Deathscythe pilot he didn't show it and he wordlessly let the other boy into his room. He was really surprised though when he sat in his spot and waited for Wufei to do the same. "C'mon Fei I wanna hear ya read before bed." He whined not caring if he sounded like a spoiled child, he was tired and wanted to know what happened next in the story. Wufei said nothing but sat and pulled the book out and for the third time in lest then twenty minutes he was shocked again as Duo was out before he had even finished the page he was on. Sighing Wufei set the book aside and lifted Maxwell into his lap before getting up. The American wasn't heavy but he wasn't light by any means so Wufei deposited him on his bed and covered him before turning out the lights and making his way to Duo's room. Wufei would just have to suffer for a few hours since he wasn't able to sleep in his own bed tonight.


	3. Nightmare

**Say You'll Haunt Me**

_**Author's Note**: _This Story is inspired by _**Fangs of the Father**_ by **Umei No Mai** and _**The Beast in Me**_ by **Ajayd**. Two very good stories that I highly recommend. Also I haven't forgotten my other stories, They are currently being revised and beta'ed and will be updated when the process is complete. Thank you to those who have read and stayed by my side, it means a lot to me.

_**Disclaimer:**_ Gundam Wing is owned by Bandai, Sunrise, Sotsu and others. The authors in this archive make no claim of ownership of anything but their ideas and the stories themselves, and write for entertainment only. No copyright infringement intended.

_'Italics'_ – Words being written or read.

'Apostrophes' – Thoughts.

"Quotations" - Speech.

**Nightmare**

Wufei startled awake, eyes adjusting quickly to the darkness and unusual surroundings of Maxwell's room. He wasn't sure what had awoken him only that he had been startled by whatever it was. If he had Duo's ability to see the braided boy's alter ego he would have known that Shinigami was what had woken him. The specter stood just to Wufei's right, glaring at the Chinese boy for not getting out of bed to investigate.

Duo was having a nightmare and while Solo tried to sooth the boy, Shinigami had taken it upon himself to get someone to check up on Duo, who better then the owner of the room, his only problem was getting the other pilot to wake up. Shinigami stared at Wufei for a whole to minutes before he lost his temper and started glaring at the sleeping boy, he tried to put as much of a threatening aura as he could knowing that the other pilots could often feel Shinigami when he was angry, though he was usually with Duo he felt it was worth a shot. With luck Wufei would wake up.

Just as Wufei was going to lay back down and go to sleep a soft whimper caught his attention. Frowning at the sound the Chinese boy stood and exited the room to see if he could better locate the source of the sound. Another whimper followed by what sounded suspiciously like a sob had Wufei in his room in a matter of seconds, Duo was curled into a tight ball and shivering despite having the blanked twisted about himself. Solo and Shinigami watched as Wufei thought about the best way to approached the distressed American.

Not wanting to get a beating by waking Duo improperly, Wufei laid on the bed and molded himself around Duo's back and wrapped his arms around Duo's own arms and chest. 'Better safe then sorry, spirits only know that Maxwell could break my arm just for trying to wake him up.'

"Maxwell. Wake up, you're dreaming." Wufei said in a calm soothing tone, hoping that he wouldn't have to do much more then that to wake the boy up. He wasn't too thrilled when Duo refused to wake, he was shocked to hear his voice though.

"S'lo." he gasped out as if he was in pain. Solo took a step closer to the bed but Shinigami shook his head, there was nothing either of them could do now. Wufei however could do something and he did. He shook Duo a little and tried again, "Maxwell. Wake up." Another choked sob and Wufei had enough, "Duo!" he growled out and gave him a rough shake. Duo gasped and tried to lurch forward but was held still by Wufei's near bruising grip. "Maxwell, are you awake?" the Chinese boy whispered softly into Duo's ear. The American was quiet for a few minutes before he gave Wufei a nod and a shaky "Yeah...Ya can let go now."

Wufei released Duo and sat up, uncomfortable with the heavy silence, he asked, "Do you have them often?" Duo didn't reply right away, instead he looked over to his side to see if one of his specters had alerted Wufei or if he had just gotten louder then usual. The glare he got from Shinigami answered his question; Duo sighed, "Yeah, more often then not. But they're worse after a rough mission."

Wufei nodded, "It's natural. We all suffer, though I haven't heard anything from Yuy, but I know Winner has really bad ones that Barton deals with."

"Do...Do you..." Duo couldn't bring himself to ask.

"Yes. Not even my meditation can stop them sometimes. It's nothing to be ashamed of, we all have our pasts. Some of us just hide them better then others."

It was quiet again, but not uncomfortable. Duo thought over Wufei's words and considered his companion. Wufei kept everyone at a distance and while Duo had gotten closer to the boy he didn't know anything about him other then what their shared interests were. Then again Wufei probably didn't know anything about him either.

"You have the best mask though." The words were quiet but Duo heard them clearly. "You have the strength to laugh in the face of death and live life without fear. Although, I think you should open up to someone about what you see. Get some sleep Maxwell." He finished as he stood and exited his room.

Duo was stunned momentarily before he looked from the spot Wufei just vacated to the two specters looking at the closed door in shock. "He noticed too." was all that was said but the two entities felt that Wufei's acknowledgment was slightly different then Heero's.

Duo laid back down and tried to will himself to sleep, even with his efforts it took him about an hour to fall actually fall asleep. When he finally did sleep Shinigami looked over at Solo who nodded, the two needed to talk about Heero and Wufei, the two pilots would eventually want to know why Duo could never seem to focus on a given point for very long. The two specters moved from Wufei's room into the hall and Solo was the first to brooch the subject.

'He was quick to respond to Duo.' The blond ran his hand through his hair.

'It's his meditation yanno. Granted I dun know what made 'im comfort the boy; I jus' wanted 'im to wake 'im up.' Shinigami said shifting from foot to foot.

'That was a shock, I admit. He seems nice but...' Solo trailed off.

'But? Ya can't start a sentence an' then cut it off S'lo. Where'd ya manners go?' Shinigami teased with a grin.

Solo glared at the apparition, 'I was gonna say that he seems too guarded an' I dun trust 'im!' Solo snapped letting his L2 heritage seep into his speech.

Shinigami laughed, 'I trust 'im. He's no more guarded then the rest of 'em yanno. Only we keep everyone more distanced by portraying closeness. I wonder if they all see it like 'Fei or if they can't see past our mask.'

'We'll have to keep an eye on them and try to make ourselves scarce around the others for now. And the diary; we'll have to erase it. I dun want blue eyes to know me yanno. I dun trust anyone who hacks into a friends personal business.' Shinigami growled.

Solo smiled, 'I trust blue eyes, but I don't trust onyx eyes. However I agree about the diary it has to go.'

Shinigami growled but didn't say anything further; he pushed pass Solo and into the room he usually stayed in with Duo to find the boy's laptop on the floor where Duo left it. Unfortunately Wufei wasn't asleep yet, so Shinigami sat and decided to wait.

Wufei couldn't sleep. His little chat with Maxwell was playing over and over in his mind; he couldn't help but feel he was out of line mentioning that Maxwell might be less then sane, but for some reason he felt he needed to let the American know that he knew. Feeling that sleep wouldn't come for some time Wufei left the bed to sit on the floor with legs crossed and eyes closed. He would center himself and maybe when he did he would be able to find sleep.

Wufei felt the shift in himself, the moment when his soul and mind calmed and opened up to his surroundings; he knew he wasn't alone in the room. In his subconscious Wufei constructed his mind's landscape to be the identical replica of Maxwell's room, leaving the 'door' to himself open. He wondered if whatever he felt would be able to connect with him, or if Maxwell wasn't able to sleep and had wondered back into his room but he would've known if it was Maxwell or any of the other pilots. They each had a certain feel about them and this 'presence' felt like the American but darker, coarser and more threatening even while it was passive. Duo himself felt lighter, softer, almost like silk and the laughter he so easily spouted.

Shinigami shivered, he felt it the moment Wufei connected with him. He hadn't been in this situation before; usually he was hidden under Duo's aura with Solo, but on his own Wufei had immediately registered his presence and made contact, but Shinigami wasn't sure if he should let Wufei connect fully or to retreat while the Chinese boy further strengthened his third eye, which might eventually be strong enough to pick them up without meditation. The apparition sighed, 'Better me then Solo.'

**Author's Note: **Sorry for the short chapter I lost my thumb drive that had this story so I had to redo the last few chapter's I had written. If I find i'll come back and fix the chapter, hope you guys understand.


	4. Crazy Sunshine

**Say You'll Haunt Me**

_**Author's Note**: Another short Chapter. Forgive me please._

This Story is inspired by _**Fangs of the Father**_ by **Umei No Mai** and _**The Beast in Me**_ by **Ajayd**. Two very good stories that I highly recommend. Also I haven't forgotten my other stories, They are currently being revised and beta'ed and will be updated when the process is complete. Thank you to those who have read and stayed by my side, it means a lot to me.

_**Disclaimer:**_ Gundam Wing is owned by Bandai, Sunrise, Sotsu and others. The authors in this archive make no claim of ownership of anything but their ideas and the stories themselves, and write for entertainment only. No copyright infringement intended.

_'Italics'_ – Words being written or read.

'Apostrophes' – Thoughts.

"Quotations" - Speech.

**Crazy Sunshine**

Solo was agitated, Death should have been back a long time ago; Duo was close to waking and Solo could hear the other pilots already awake. 'Damn it Death where the hell are you?' Solo grumbled as he paced back and forth at the foot of Wufei's bed.

"S'lo stop being so grumpy and go to bed, I'm still sleepy." Duo groused and buried his face further into the pillows and promptly falling back asleep. Solo sighed and laid down next to Duo, he knew that it wasn't often they had times just the two of them anymore so he took advantage of it and pulled the black band from Duo's braid and began unraveling the thick rope.

Solo was running his hand through the thick chestnut mass when the bedroom door flew open, "Wufei we got..." Heero's voice dropped off at the sight that greeted him. Duo's hair was loose, something no one had seen yet, his chest was slightly bared through his partially opened night shirt and he had the blanket tucked securely in one fist and pulled up towards his heart. But the most remarkable thing was his relaxed face where a small secret small was playing on his lips, he looked like he was hiding something and was playfully challenging any who saw to find out what it was.

Wufei startled awake by the violent opening of Duo's bedroom door, "We have a mission. I'll brief you on the way; take only the essentials." Heero's voice was firm and Wufei detected a strained quality to it and wondered what had him so flustered. Giving Heero a nod he stood and stretched, he took a moment to glance about the room and thought back on his dream. Shaking his head he moved to his room and caught sight of Duo shifting in his bed which brought back more details of the vivid dream; he would have to stop falling asleep while meditating. Pulling the blankets to cover Duo, Wufei took a moment to really look at Duo and for the first time he noticed his hair down. 'Breathtaking,' was Wufei's first thought, 'But somehow it just doesn't look right.' was his second.

Shinigami strolled in moments after Wufei and shook his head, the boy had made contact with the apparition of death and shrugged it off as a dream. 'Maybe he ain't as sharp as I thought.' Death sighed just before he was confronted by a highly irritated Solo. The two bickered quietly as to not draw attention to themselves from their sleeping companion and didn't notice the Chinese male re-braiding the earthy mass fanned out on his bed nor the soft cooing sigh the American gave.

Wufei held his breath and didn't move for a full ten seconds. As beautiful as Duo looked with his hair down, the 'Solitary Dragon' couldn't help but feel the wrongness of it and, knowing that Duo was fiercely protective of his hair, carefully set to re-braid the mass before the boy woke and someone saw it. 'But someone did see it.' His mind supplied, 'Yuy saw Maxwell with his hair unbound... Unbound and sleeping peacefully in my bed.' The thought wasn't as unsettling as Wufei thought it would be; at least it wasn't at first.

"Oh shit..." Wufei cursed then quickly moved away from the American sprawled in his bed and gathered his duffel which was always mission ready. With a final look at Duo Wufei left with a quiet, "Fuck."

Those quiet curses brought the two quarreling apparitions out of their fight to see what had the Chinese boy breaking reserve but he was already grabbing his duffel and out the door. Solo was the first to snap out of his daze, 'This is your fault. Blue eyes caught Duo in Wufei's bed, Death. What are we gonna do now?'

Shinigami shrugged, 'It dun matter what we do. Anyway we got bigger things to discuss, ya see, last night I made contact with Dragon, though he thought it was just a dream. Dragon can feel me he reached out when he was meditating.'

Solo was quiet before he asked, 'What did you tell him? And will he try to contact you again, is there a chance that he realized that you were really there?' Shinigami shook his head, 'No he didn't believe me about anything besides, would you believe you were talking to death?'

'No I wouldn't.' Solo answered, 'But still I think one of us should keep an eye on him and on Blue eyes too. You should have seen the look on his face.' Solo smiled knowing that it would irritate the other specter. He wasn't disappointed when Shinigami snapped, 'Why the hell did you take down his hair? We agreed there would be none of that while the others were in the house. I don't even get to see his hair unbound that often.' he ended in a pout causing Solo to laugh loudly and Duo to wake up.

"Man you guys sure are active this morning, why don't you go bug someone else for a change." The American grouched as he headed to his room for clean clothes and a towel. "Ima take a shower leave me alone for a bit." He demanded while making a 'shooing motion with his hand. The two specters grinned but let him be for the moment.

"So why do you need me? It doesn't sound like a difficult mission." Wufei asked Heero as they took a shuttle to the city where Oz had set up a training facility. The Japanese boy gave an irritated huff that came out as a heavy breath before he answered. "I was supposed to have Duo with me but he had just come back from a solo and G sent the report to J late. You were the next choice for back up since Barton and Winner will be going on a two week stealth mission soon." Wufei raised a brow but Heero shrugged. Neither boy commented further and the rest of the two hour flight was spent in silence.

Heero was silently seething though he couldn't figure out why. Seeing Duo in Wufei's bed should not have been such an issue to the boy but it was eating away at him, so was the image of Duo's unbound hair and soft smile. A sight that would most likely be burned into his retinas for an eternity.

'What was he doing in Wufei's bed though?' was one thought that kept circling in Heero's mind, a vulture searching for carrion, 'Did Chang sleep with him?' An unrecognized emotion flared in Heero and he took a moment to glare at the Chinese boy currently double checking the GPS in the shuttle.

"Our ETA is six minutes forty two seconds." Wufei's voice breached Heero's thoughts and the Japanese boy gave a jerky nod that Wufei ignored in favor of fastening his seat belt. Heero copied the movement and began searching for a place to set down.


	5. Special Chapter! Dare

**Say You'll Haunt Me**

**Special Chapter**

**One**

_**Author's Note**: This is a Special short chapter with the exchange between Shinigami and Wufei. Also this chapter may or may not be referenced later and is being posted as a gift to you readers while I work on the next chapter. Sorry to keep you guys waiting but my husband just returned from Afghanistan and is suffering from PTSD and I'm having a bit of trouble getting him situated._

This Story is inspired by _**Fangs of the Father**_ by **Umei No Mai** and _**The Beast in Me**_ by **Ajayd**. Two very good stories that I highly recommend. Also I haven't forgotten my other stories, They are currently being revised and beta'ed and will be updated when the process is complete. Thank you to those who have read and stayed by my side, it means a lot to me.

_**Disclaimer:**_ Gundam Wing is owned by Bandai, Sunrise, Sotsu and others. The authors in this archive make no claim of ownership of anything but their ideas and the stories themselves, and write for entertainment only. No copyright infringement intended.

_'Italics'_ – Words being written or read.

'Apostrophes' – Thoughts.

"Quotations" - Speech

**Dare**

Wufei had to wonder if he had fallen asleep at some point, because Duo, or what looked like Duo had just walked into the room. 'He looks...Different.' He thought as the Duo look a like strolled closer almost taunting Wufei to say something. Not one to pass up a challenge Wufei spoke.

"Maxwell." 'Duo' laughed. Suddenly Wufei knew that whoever this was, they weren't Duo. "Who are you?"

'Duo' just stood there for a moment before he slowly let a smile spread across his face and in a shocking moment of clarity, Wufei knew the look of the face he was caught by. He had only seen it once before on a mission he took with the braided menace. The Chinese's head was momentarily full of names though only one managed to find it's way to his lips, "Death."

Death nodded and made a show of giving Wufei a round of applause before rolling his eyes and plopping down on the floor in an exaggerated manner. Wufei was still puzzling over the fact that he was looking at Duo but seeing him as Death. _'What was in my tea at dinner?'_ The dragon thought and Death laughed as if he could hear what Wufei was thinking. It was startling to hear Duo's normal cheerful laughter twisted into something dark and sinister; it sent chills up Wufei's spine.

"Dragon. Stop staring."

"Dragon?" Wufei would have glared at the boy he was faced with but the nickname threw him off balance and the glare he normally would have thrown was replaced with a confused head tilt.

It was ignored. "Ya made him feel better, Dragon. I'm curious, why is that?" Death asked as he looked at the confused boy in front of him. "Oh as for your tea, It was Chai with two spoons of sugar. Just the way he likes it." Death grinned in that playful way Duo did when he was trying to work Wufei into a rant or tease Quatre about his habit of spying on people.

For a glorious two minutes Wufei's only thought was 'Huh?' but once the shock was over he glared at the boy in front of him. "You're as cocky as he is. I wasn't staring I was analyzing, there is a difference and to be honest I don't even know why I am speaking with you. You don't exist and this has to be the most absurd dream I have ever had the misfortune of having." Wufei informed Death with his high and might scholar voice. Then as an afterthought he added, "I don't even like Chai tea."

Death listened to the Chinese boy snip at him and felt his grin widen but what really made the boy laugh was the little side note about the tea. He let loose a manic peal of laughter and rolled over to his side to show his amusement. Wufei on the other hand didn't find the situation funny at all and put in extra effort to glare at Death. "Is there a point to your little visit?" Wufei snapped when the boy finally stopped laughing. To his utter shock he began to sing.

"No sleep  
>No sleep until I am done with finding the answer<br>Won't stop  
>Won't stop before I find a cure for this cancer<br>Sometimes  
>I feel I going down and so disconnected<br>Somehow  
>I know that I am haunted to be wanted"<p>

Completely confused and not sure what to do he sat and watched, well stared dumfounded. If he was honest with himself he would have to admit that the Duo twin was attractive sprawled out on the floor eyes half lidded singing like a fallen angel.

"I've been watching  
>I've been waiting<br>In the shadows all my time  
>I've been searching<br>I've been living  
>For tomorrows all my life"<p>

That verse caught Wufei's attention and pulled him from thoughts he wasn't sure he wanted to be having, but this, it felt important.

"In the shadows"

'What was being said without really being said at all?' Wufei frowned.

"In the shadows"

'Shadows. Duo looks at our shadows more often then he looks at us.' He thought.

"They say  
>That i must learn to kill before i can feel safe<br>But I  
>I rather kill myself then turn into their slave<br>Sometimes  
>I feel that I should go and play with the thunder<br>Somehow  
>I just don't wanna stay and wait for a wonder"<p>

'Now that doesn't make any sense.' Wufei glanced down at his hands then back at Death who was gazing at him through his peripheral vision. 'I thought he was telling me something, but maybe it's just that he wanted to sing. Duo sings often enough that it's probably just something my mind imposed on this look a like.'

"I've been watching  
>I've been waiting<br>In the shadows all my time  
>I've been searching<br>I've been living  
>For tomorrows all my life"<p>

'You're fading.' Wufei thought as he looked at Death. 'Everything is fading...Why?'

"Lately I been walking walking in circles, watching waiting for something  
>Feel me touch me heal me, come take me higher"<p>

"Could anyone take you higher?" He asked but his voice sounded faint. Death turned and smiled but his answer was quiet and Wufei wondered if he heard it all.

"In the shadows

I've been waiting"

'If I'm dreaming...Does...this mean...I'm waking?'


	6. Indestructible

**Say You'll Haunt Me**

_**Author's Note**: _This Story is inspired by _**Fangs of the Father**_ by **Umei No Mai** and _**The Beast in Me**_ by **Ajayd**. Two very good stories that I highly recommend. Thank you to those who have read and stayed by my side, it means a lot to me.

_**Disclaimer:**_ Gundam Wing is owned by Bandai, Sunrise, Sotsu and others. The authors in this archive make no claim of ownership of anything but their ideas and the stories themselves, and write for entertainment only. No copyright infringement intended.

_'Italics'_ – Words being written or read.

'Apostrophes' – Thoughts.

"Quotations" - Speech.

**Indestructible**

"Yuy. What's your status?" Wufei grunted as he let his Dragon fang rip through another mobile suit. He had been Heero's distraction for about thirty minutes and he still hadn't heard from his fellow pilot. Even after contacting the Japanese boy it was another five minutes before he responded.

"Chang. Mission successful. Burn it and meet at the rendezvous point." The connection was cut as suddenly as it had come on and Wufei grunted in annoyance. While the Chinese boy had no problem with his fellow pilot, something about this mission had the other boy acting more curt then usual. Whatever was wrong with Yuy, he needed to get over it fast because it was honestly irritating Wufei. If he had done something to offend him then the least the other boy could do was confront him about it, if it was about not getting paired with Duo well then that was his doctor's problem. Letting out another grunt he pulled his beam glaive from it's resting place to dispatch the remaining suits quickly, when he was sure that he had taken out all the nearest suits he proceeded to do as Yuy asked and burn it with Shenlong's dragon fang fire.; at least he had a productive outlet for his frustrations.

"Oooooooohhhhhhh"

Caught off guard by the sudden wail in outside the hanger containing the gundams, Heero and Wufei shared a glance to make sure they weren't imagining things after seventy two hours without sleep.

"Yeeeaaaaaaaaaahhh."

"Maxwell." Wufei sighed and headed for the hanger doors knowing that the braided boy was on his way over and probably unaware of his fellow pilots' return due to his wailing or singing as he believed it to be called. Wufei was yet to be convinced of this.

"Guilty whoa, guilty I feel so empty. Yeah, empty, you know how to make me feel."

Wufei sighed, he was getting a headache. Heero looked like he might be developing a twitch but refused to acknowledge it or the braided menace they kept company.

"I never- SONAVUH MUTHALESS GOAT!" Duo cried out in shock as he opened the hanger door and was greeted by two irritated zombies. Zombies that looked oddly like Wufei and Heero, who had disappeared three days prior to this little scare. "Whaddya trying to do, give me heart failure!"

"You should have been more aware of your surroundings not broadcasting to OZ our location." Heero reprimanded the American and Wufei could tell by the glare directed at the Japanese pilot that a stellar argument was going to take place. Deciding that there were better things to be done then waste time watching the soldier and the jester duke it out, the dragon silently slipped away and headed for the safe house to bask in a nice hot shower, then he was going to curl up in the middle of his bed and sleep for the next twelve hours.

Solo and Death enjoyed watching the battle of wills but Death was the first to notice a silently retreating Chinese pilot and opted to follow. Let's just say his show was far more entertaining then the one Solo was observing. Solo used to his companion's sudden departures didn't think much of it and took a grand delight in listening to Duo explain in great detail how he was not leading OZ to their doorstep and how if anything tipped them off it was a shuttle harboring two gundams. All the subtly of a brick through a glass window as Duo put it. Solo however also learned that 'Hn.' could mean a variety of things depending on the context and tone to which it was issued. Solo was amazed that Duo seemed to know what each 'Hn' was. How, what was basically, a grunt could have so many meanings, he also wondered if he could use it to irritate his deathly companion.

"Gah, whatever I have repairs that need to be made on Deathscythe." Duo ended the argument when he caught the manic glee from Solo and noted that Death was nowhere to be seen. Neither was Wufei, but Duo suspected he had slipped away to shower and sleep. Grumbling about androids and the wonders of advanced technology, Duo headed for his gundam with Solo on his heels laughing all the while and looking everything like a carefree teenager.

"What has you all chipper?" Duo asked his ghostly friend the moment they were safely out of Heero's hearing range. The response he got was enough to make him groan like he was in physical pain. Solo had answered by squaring his shoulders, crossing his arms over his chest, and giving Duo a glare that lacked any real heat, but what made him groan was the very distinct sound the specter made.

"Do I need to be concerned with your obsession of Heero?" he asked exasperated. Solo made another sound but moments later burst into laughter and toppled off of Deathscythe's leg where Duo was tinkering with the wiring. The American pilot rolled his eyes and put a palm to his forehead. 'It was so peaceful earlier too.' he thought with a sigh.

-:-:-

Death clung to Wufei like a second skin as the Chinese boy exited the steam filled bathroom, the specter was so much happier to have followed the bronze pilot then stay and watch the goats butt heads in the hanger. Solo had truly missed an eye opening show and Death now had a few fun facts to tease his host with. The birthmark on Wufei's back closely resembled a teddy bear and Death had howled in laughter after seeing it and remembering Duo's pet name of Wu-bear. How fitting it was now.

However the one thing that fascinated the specter the most was the dragon that curled secretively around the boy's ankle. Death had spent nearly the last twenty minutes staring at it, the serpentine creature was black with startling blue eyes and a vivid yellow gold mane. Death couldn't help but compare the dragon's coloring to his host and his gundam, Deathscythe.

Unfortunately the specter didn't get to stay watching the dragon as Solo came and dragged him back to Duo who needed another set of eyes. Well eyes that knew about machines, that is, for all of Solo's street knowledge the guy couldn't tell Fat-head from a Phillips. Death sulked all the way back to his host who was going on about a busted hyper jammer. Death could feel the frustration, since Duo's gundam relied heavily on those hyper jammers to keep his stealth optimized.

Making soothing motions with his hands Solo brought Duo's attention to Death and the American gave a whoop of joy before directing Death to the source of the problem and began detailing the systems check and the wiring. Death nodded only half listening as he went over Duo's progress so far; he could have smacked the boy for forgetting to check all his wires. Pulling the American down to point out the to spliced wires that were grounding out, Death shook his head and allowed the boy to sheepishly cover the wires and laugh it off.

Having wasted valuable time, Heero suffered a cold shower and a ration bar before hitting his laptop. The Japanese pilot felt he had given the American enough time to complete a few journal entries and now he was going to check to see if he followed through with it. He hadn't been paying attention to his eyes lately and he felt that he should have been but this would make up for it.

Hacking Duo's system was surprisingly easy, he made a note to speak to the other pilot later about his lack of security, but finding the journal itself was a bit more difficult. All of Duo's icons were tiny game characters marked by bold 'CLICK ME!' labels. The first few icons that Heero clicked gained him entry to several different schematics to a few gadgets the other boy was working on and Heero quickly moved on.

The eighth file he delved into though proved to be the one he was looking for but was disappointed to only find one entry. Said entry however was informative as to what kind of background Duo had, although the fact that Duo knew that Heero would hack his files might have had something to do with the lax security. He made another note to speak with Duo about it; just because the American felt that they were friends didn't mean he should lower his guard because of it.

Removing himself from Duo's systems, Heero shut down his hacking programs and pulled up a blank document to begin his mission report. Then he would get some sleep, that is if Duo didn't come inside wailing like he was when he and Wufei returned. Just thinking about it made Heero shudder. He decided that the quicker he typed it up and finished the sooner he could sleep and avoid Duo.

-:-:-

Death was going to kill Solo. He was going to enjoy it as well; the other specter had been impersonating 'Blue Eyes' for two days now and the glares and grunts were grating on his last nerves. Duo's too if the short temper was anything to go by. Although his host could be angry at 'Blue eyes' himself since he had been in a bratty mood since his laptop locked up and refused to do anything more then load up to the user log in, Duo knew what was wrong with the machine , so did Death and Solo, but Heero refused to admit any wrong doings so the American refused to help. By far the biggest pissing match the two pilots have had yet.

Wufei was ready to kill his fellow pilots and carry on his mission alone, or if that failed find new pilots. Winner and Barton could live but Duo and Heero either had to work something out or stop torturing Wufei and die. Considering that Wufei sort of liked Duo, to an extent, he supposed the former rather then the later would have to come to pass. Based on the argument downstairs, that something was a long way in coming.

"Just admit that you hacked my system and I would be happy to help." Duo once again spouted, his tone exasperated.

"I don't need your help. I need your laptop to hack my own. Are you going to give it to me or not?" Heero deadpanned.

"No. And don't bother asking 'Fei, he and I have plans for this afternoon." Duo said, this time laughter could be heard in his voice.

"You and Wufei. I doubt that." the skepticism was palpable in Yuy's voice.

"Yup. 'Fei! I need a second opinion, bring our laptops and meet me in the hanger!" Duo hollered out and headed for the back door.

With a sigh the Chinese boy grabbed the two laptops and headed out to meet the American, passing Yuy he decided to give him a bit of advice. "Just admit to your trespassing so we can go on without all your tension."

When Wufei finally met up with Duo he handed him the laptop and growled, "Don't shout through the house and next time inform me before hand if you plan on dragging me between you and Yuy."

Duo just smiled.


	7. Have a nice Dream

**Say You'll Haunt Me**

_**Author's Note**__: _This Story is inspired by _**Fangs of the Father**_ by **Umei No Mai** and _**The Beast in Me**_ by **Ajayd**. Two very good stories that I highly recommend.

_**Disclaimer:**_ Gundam Wing is owned by Bandai, Sunrise, Sotsu and others. The authors in this archive make no claim of ownership of anything but their ideas and the stories themselves, and write for entertainment only. No copyright infringement intended.

_'Italics'_ – Words being written or read.

'Apostrophes' – Thoughts.

"Quotations" - Speech.

**Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Have a Nice Dream!**

"Ya know we wouldn't have this problem if he'd just admit he hacked my system." Duo said as he acsended to Deathscythe's cockpit. Wufei just grunted with a shake of his head, how the American knew Heero had messed with his system, he wasn't sure, but Duo seemed certain.

"I know cuz every time he logs in I get an alert from my computer and it records more of his information without him having to do anything. It's the program I wrote specifically to keep track of any hackers. While It won't destroy any of the data stored on the hacker's system it will copy everything for me but destroy anything pertaining to my stuff. I'm not as naive as he thinks ya know?" Duo was working himself into a rant and Wufei felt that his friend just needed to blow off some steam.

Solo and Death were watching the pair as well, letting a bit of their own irritation channel through Duo to relive the toxic tension between the three. Duo had a point, Blue Eyes was a bit too confidant in his abilities and he needed to admit that he had trespassed upon the privacy of his teammate and breached any trust he may have had. Not that he had much with Death.

"Impressive Maxwell. I'm assuming that you've had to fix Yuy's laptop once before." Wufei said as he hooked up his own laptop to Nataku to run diagnostics. Duo smirked before doing the same with his own computer and gundam.

"Nah, this would be the first time I've utilized my nifty little virus against solider boy. But he is the reason that I developed it." He started up his own diagnostics and several minor upgrade programs. "Did I ever tell ya 'bout the first time I met up with Heero?"

Wufei had to think for a moment, his friendship with Duo was still fairly new and while they did spend some time together, they really didn't know a whole lot about each other. "No, I don't believe you have."

-:-:-:-

"So the next mornin' I hear him taking off an' I'm thinkin' 'Wow the guy actually fixed his gundam in a single night.' Then my buddies are all 'Yeah but he used the parts from Scythe to do it.' Man I was so pissed but I had to give 'im credit cuz he managed to hack through my security without it going off." Do finished as the boys entered the kitchen for dinner, it being Wufei's turn to cook.

"Injustice! Yuy is indebted to you, Maxwell. Not only did you save his hide but then he stole parts from your gundam, what if you had gotten a mission and weren't able to perform it because of his actions?"

Duo laughed it off with a genuinely amused smile, "Wouldn't 'ave mattered much. I would've made G send a note to Heero's crazy puppeteer telling him to take the mission. G is pretty cool like that."

Wufei nodded as he began pulling out all the items he needed to make Cantonese siumai, all the while Duo hovered and babbled about this and that, until he asked Wufei what it was he was making.

"Pork and mushroom dumplings." Was the simple response and Duo made a face. Weren't mushrooms a fungus? He didn't think he could eat something that grew up on decomposing trash despite having done the same as a kid, but he wasn't about to tell Wufei that. The last thing he wanted to do was to offend his closest friend.

Which was an odd thought since Duo was friendly with everyone but it was only with Wufei and Quatre that Duo had opened up a little. However it was only with Wufei did Duo's two apparitions settle and wander off to do god knows what. And speak of the devils, as if the thought of them summoned them to Duo's side. Death drooling over Wufei's shoulder as he chopped, pleated, and stuffed his dumplings. Solo was shaking his head with the same uncertainty that Duo felt moments ago. The blond specter nudged Duo's side in question, silently asking if he was really going to eat a meal made of fungi. Duo just shrugged.

"Hey 'Fei, I'm gonna shower." The American said as he headed out of the kitchen and Wufei just gave a nod, too absorbed in his work to answer.

-:-:-:-:-:-

Back upstairs and in the shower Duo was taking the time to thoroughly condition his hair. Solo was sitting on the toilet outside the shower and was audibly complaining about Death's new focus; Duo felt it was safe to say that the blond specter was jealous, though if he wanted to play dirty all he had to do was go spend some time mooning over Heero and Death would be glued to Solo's side until he was satisfied that the blond didn't even know the Japanese boy existed.

The thought made the American laugh with how possessive the two specters were of each other and how they went about getting attention from the other. Solo went and made Death jealous while Death however was more hands on and Duo had walked in on them more then once. Not that it was anything to cause him nightmares or anything but it was sort of endearing to see Death combing his fingers through Solo's hair or drawing imaginary patterns on his bare chest when they thought Duo was preoccupied. It was an interesting dynamic in their relationship, that sort of overflowed into bouts of affection toward Duo that sometimes were completely unexpected but totally appreciated. They provided an outlet for his fear and comfort when he needed it most. With the exception of a few times when the terrors of the night caught up to him bringing his past to the forefront of his mind with sickening distortions. He was grateful that the boys had brought Wufei to him; the Chinese boy had offered comfort, clarity and time to compose himself without ever expecting anything in return. The incident hadn't even been brought up and Duo was thankful since he wasn't quite ready to delve that information on anyone anytime soon.

When Duo finally returned to his fellow pilots, Quatre and Trowa had returned, and the tall European was resting on the couch with an ice pack on his swollen knee and his right arm bandaged tightly. Quatre was sporting an ugly mouse under his left eye and had both wrists tightly secured in splints; Duo knew the mission had to be rough for Trowa to be injured but it was shocking to Quatre looking like he went into the octagon with the heavy weight champ and put up the fight of his life.

"Hey Q-bean, let's get that mouse outta your face and some grub in your belly, hm?" Duo said with a cheery smile and the little Arab smiled back.

"Sounds wonderful, Heero just went to sterilize the scalpel." Duo shuddered in sympathy for Quatre and thought 'Ouch.'

"At least it'll be quick." Was all Duo could say before Heero returned with the cooling blade and pressed it quickly just under the blood filled lump on Quatre's face. The blond winced but otherwise gave no indication of feeling his skin cut open. Duo made himself useful by prepping a cheerful looking band-aid that was dotted with colorful cartoon characters. Trowa smirked when he laid eye on it, the bandage would only highlight Quatre's deceivingly innocent looks.

"Don't forget the sucker Duo." The American blinked once as Heero took the band-aid and pressed it firmly to Quatre's face just as Duo burst out in laughter.

"A sucker!" Duo managed to gasp out between fits of laughter. Wufei drawn from the kitchen by the American's laughter shook his head in amusement as Duo panted and giggled as he held on to the little blond who was rolling his eyes and supporting his friend with a fond smile.

"Dinner is ready." Was the response the Chinese boy had to this childish display, and everyone looked up with hungry eyes. Both Quatre and Duo helped Trowa to the kitchen while Heero followed Wufei to help serve.

-:-:-:-:-:-:-

A/N : Another short chapter, but I seem to be suffering from the terrible writer's block. I'm going to try a few writing exercises in hopes of getting my muse back.


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